Whitman Girls Basketball Defeats Sachem North

Whitman's girls basketball team  outmatched Sachem North on their way to a 70-33 route in a League II girls basketball game at Whitman Tuesday evening.

The first few minutes had spectators looking at a tight basketball game with the score tied 8-8 before the Wildcats took control of the game with some overwhelming man to man defense that allowed them to go on a 42-6 run for the remainder of the first half.

The Wildcats put pressure on the Arrows offense every time they got possession of the ball, forcing them to fight for every inch of the floor.   With the win, Whitman improved their record to 8-2 (5-1) while North falls to 4-5 (2-4).  

The Heroes: Despite playing only about half of the game, Alexandra Leftridge led the Wildcats both offensively and defensively, scoring 24 points and playing a swarming defense, where she seemed to be immediately on whoever had the ball.   Essence Casey also had fine game for the Wildcats, scoring 8 points, 3 assists and 4 steals. She and Leftridge used their 5'10” height and quick speed to control the tempo of the game.   Leading the Wildcats in rebounding was Erica Scott with 6. She also contributed with 8 points. Kelly Bilodeau had 5 steals and scored 6 points while Rachel Perea lead the team with her 5 assists.  

For the Arrows, Erin McNulty and Danielle Levine each score 11 points. Brooke Foltmann hit North's lone three pointer in the game.  

The Turning Point: For the first few minutes the Arrows seemed to be containing the Wildcats aggressive offense and finding ways to circumvent their defense and get the ball in the net by shooting for a high percentage. McNulty and Levine each had two baskets each to match the 8 points quickly put up by Leftridge. That's about all North could muster before they began to feel the defensive pressure and saw their shots missing wide, being blocked, or had errant passes picked off as Whitman scored the next 12 points in the game.  

Quotable: “I thought we came out playing alright but then we let them go on little run and they went into a little shell,” North coach James Mellor said. “Once a team gets rolling on us we seem to shy away. The put on a lot of pressure. We had the girls in the right spots but with them pressuring the ball, we can't make the right passes.”

  “It was definitely fun,” Leftridge said. “It's good to get the team into it. You have to keep running over to them because you can't have any mercy. Teams won't have mercy on us so you have to get ready for the big time. It was fun because the girls were all over the floor stealing and getting low on defense, and everyone seemed to be getting really into it.  

The Bottom Line: The Wildcats bounced back from a disappointing loss against Northport last Thursday, making that 9 point loss seem like a typo after tonight's 37 point win.

They did a great job of spreading the ball around, and had a nice mix of outside shooting and taking it to the rim to keep the Arrows off balance. If they can continue to play the type of defense that they played tonight then they have a great shot once playoff time comes around.

 Meanwhile, North has a lot of work to do after consecutive losses. They'll head home and try to figure out a Central Islip team that was tied with Whitman coming into tonight. Their lack of size hurt them in tonight's game, although they have some tenacious young player who are smart, they need to figure out ways to get by defensive pressure and make better passes in those situations.

Key Stat: Although they scored 70 points, Leftridge was the only Whitman player in double figures, a testament to the involvement of the bench.

Who's Next?: North heads home to take on Central Islip on Thursday at 6 p.m. Whitman will travel to Connetquot on Saturday for a 3 p.m. game.